Walking Home
by WriteEditLife
Summary: Jughead's thoughts while walking Betty home in 1x07.


"Hey, you didn't have to walk me home," Betty said, quietly breaking the silence between her and Jughead as they walked through the dark streets of Riverdale.

"Um, there's a killer on the loose, remember?" Jughead replied, "Besides, isn't this what…you know…what…people like us, who have gone through what we've gone through do?"

They lapsed into a comfortable silence for a few moments, their hands easily clasped together in between them, swinging loosely. Jughead took a quick side glance at Betty, whose big eyes were trained on the ground, an expression of deep worry across her beautiful face.

"What is it?" Jughead inquired, "I mean besides everything." He waited patiently for Betty to answer, eager to erase that emotion in her features and replace it with happiness. "She wouldn't have run away if it wasn't for me, Jug," Betty responded, glancing up at him to make eye contact, face full of regret.

"Betty, your parents were the ones lying to her and keeping her in the dark," he quickly stated a heavy inflection of honesty in his tone of voice. Jughead tried to catch her green eyes again as he said, "You did the right thing telling her the truth." As they both let that statement sink in, Jughead slowly looked around, eyes peeled for any suspicious activity.

"It's funny, this isn't the first time Polly's run away from home." Jughead's face shows a reactionary smirk and he shook his head lightly at that. "When she was 9, she and my mom got into this huge fight and she disappeared for hours. The whole neighborhood was out looking for her," she finished, her eyes wide with amusement, a laugh threatening to escape her pink lips.

"How far did she get?" Jughead asked, genuinely curious about the elder Cooper sisters great escape. Betty suddenly slowed to a stop. The realization of an important thought appeared on her features, as though a light had helpfully gone off in her mind; her eyes sparkling with hope. "What?" Jughead asked with a tone of surprise, rather curious to the quick change in mood.

Betty slowly turned to face him, her eyes searching his, thanking him silently. All at once, he felt her soft hands reach up and cup his face. Her perfectly manicured fingers splayed across his neck, thumb slightly on his cheek.

Jughead's focus shifted the second her gorgeous pink lips touched his own, initiating their second kiss. It wasn't as slow or long as their first kiss, or as he would have liked, but he was willing to take whatever his favorite neighborhood Hitchcock blonde offered him. There was a familiarity to this kiss though, like coming home. Her initiating this kiss was ensuring their first kiss wasn't a dream or her indulging him in the moment. She wanted this too. Betty wanted him _. Betty chose him._

She slowly pulled away, just enough to look him in the eyes, the wonder in his reflecting in her doe eyes like a mirror. Her hands never leaving his face, almost clutching him to keep him close to her. She offered a comforting smile, her eyes open and shining with that positive determination that radiated from her soul.

That familiar face he recognized instantly: Riverdale's own Nancy Drew was back. She looked happy. No, she looked elated. He leaned into her touch automatically, desperate to keep her close, as though an invisible force was pulling them together, like two halves of a whole finally connecting in perfect peace. Jughead was already used to this new feeling, despite everything always being so doom and gloom with him. Betty Cooper just brightened his soul, the spark of light he needed to dare hope for a blissful future.

Once again, all of her worries seemed to fade away after kissing him. His Betts had gone from constant worry about her pregnant sister to practically radiating joy with some light hand holding, a memory and a quick but meaningfully deep kiss from the boy who had adored for wonderful souls for many years.

"Thank you for walking me home. Call you later, good night!" She beamed at him, hands lightly brushing his jacket, before she turned quickly, her blonde ponytail swishing near his amused face.

Jughead watched her go, a delighted smile on his usually tired face, before back pedaling down the street. He was definitely standing taller, feeling like he could take on the world and win. The knowledge that they could take on this dark spiraling evil that seemed to consume their town since Jason's death, and that they would do it together.

He placed his hands in his pockets, trying to keep some of Betty's warmth with him during the long walk back to school. As thunder clapped nearby and rain was sure to follow, the smile on Jughead's face and reflected in his eyes wouldn't be going away anytime soon, because Betty Cooper wanted him.


End file.
